Just in time for Christmas, Tunisia’s Finance Ministry has organized a public auction of cars, jewels, carpets and trinkets that once belonged to the deposed president, Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, the first
autocrat to fall in the Arab Spring revolution incubated here two years ago.

… For the price of a 30-dinar ticket, about $20, curious Tunisians can gape freely at the former president’s collection of rare clocks, rococo-themed picture frames and gold-plated
falcons. Those in a shopping spirit can even take home one of the first lady’s treadmills or handbags.